Clinton back to the state that haunts

That was how Hillary Clinton greeted Iowans on Sunday when she took the stage at the final Sen. Tom Harkin Steak Fry in her first step toward moving past her phobia of the state that helped shatter her 2008 presidential hopes.

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“It is true, I’m thinking about it,” she acknowledged to the crowd about 2016. But that was as far as she went in her first public political speech in a year, since she stumped for longtime friend Terry McAuliffe in his successful bid for governor of Virginia. “But for today, that’s not why I’m here.”

Clinton delivered a measured speech, focused primarily on the 2014 campaigns. It had no explicit message of her own but at the same time was unmistakably about her political future. She tried to address the question on everyone’s mind — whether she’ll launch a second run for the White House — without being definitive or distracting completely from Harkin’s big day. It was Clinton’s first retail politicking appearance since her summer book tour, during which she caught flack for gaffes about her wealth and for having difficulty pivoting from being a global figure to everyday domestic issues.

She seemed at ease on the stage and accomplished what she set out to do — getting her first trip to Iowa ahead of a likely campaign out of the way — while also reminding people she’s about to become a grandmother and that that is likely to be her main focus through the rest of the year.

“In just 50 days, Iowans have a choice to make — a choice and a chance,” she said, slamming Republicans and saying it’s “a choice between the guardians of gridlock and the champions of shared opportunity and shared prosperity.”

Clinton spoke before husband, a far superior speaker who went last as part of a tradition in which former presidents give the final address. But Bill Clinton, clearly trying to be mindful of not overshadowing his wife, nonetheless gave a speech that was less of a stem-winder than a potpourri of his thoughts on campaign finance issues and his love of Harkin. He never mentioned Iowa caucus-goers’ rejection of his wife but riffed on topics ranging from “sexists” questioning a female candidate in Iowa to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s approval of what Clinton called the Koch brothers’ “black bag operations” in financing campaigns.

Neither of the Clintons has a deep relationship with Iowa, despite their love of Harkin. Bill Clinton skipped the caucuses in his 1992 campaign, when Harkin was running, and didn’t attend a steak fry until he was the party’s nominee. Hillary Clinton, never enamored with the type of exhaustive retail campaigning Iowans demand and under fire among progressives over her vote authorizing the Iraq war in 2002, knew she faced an uphill fight in the state in 2008. She held it at arm’s length, assuming a loss wouldn’t be detrimental. But that was before then-Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign caught fire, and her team scrambled to catch up.

For now, Clinton is well ahead in the polls in Iowa and people insist she had a stronger base of support in 2008 than she was given credit for. Still, her allies are mindful of shoring up support. The super PAC Ready for Hillary has been working there for a year in her absence. But potential candidates like Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley have made trips to the state, and Vice President Joe Biden has been here as well. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who is considering a campaign, appeared in the state the night before the Steak Fry, drawing a crowd of over 100 people.

Harkin, for his part, praised both Clintons: Bill Clinton on his economic record as president, and Hillary Clinton on her work as secretary of state and in the Senate. The retiring Iowa senator credited her with playing a major role in health care reform dating back to the 1990s and, in a comment Republicans are likely to seize on later, said her “fingerprints were all over” the Affordable Care Act. And Harkin suggested there are more chapters to be written in the Hillary Clinton story.

As for Clinton, she insisted she was thrilled to be back in the Hawkeye State.

“I love Iowa!” she exclaimed to more than 50 reporters from national outlets who squeezed along a barricade to watch her and Bill Clinton flip steaks on a large grill with Harkin at a photo-op before the speaking program. Being in town for Harkin’s final event was “just so nostalgic,” she added.

“It’s great. It’s fabulous being back,” said Clinton, who initially ignored reporters’ questions before turning back and approaching the throng. She answered questions and demurred on 2016, as her husband held his own separate gaggle with reporters, expounding on everything from the Arkansas Senate race (“We should win”) to baby names for his soon-to-arrive grandchild (“I don’t have a say”). He lingered after his wife went back inside.

“We’re going to be doing a lot,” Hillary Clinton told reporters about their plans for the fall elections. “And we’ve already started. There’s so much at stake.”